Noticias cacao 16 julio

DJ ICE Cocoa Review: Rises Behind London Gains; Strong Demand
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Cocoa prices bucked the weak market trend Friday and
pushed higher behind undeniable demand cues on the London market.

Nearby cocoa for September delivery cocoa settled $21, or 0.6%, higher at
$3,165 a metric ton on ICE Futures U.S. The contract rose nearly 6% this year
Liffe September cocoa settled GBP26, or 1%, at GBP2,445 a ton, off of the
GBP2,470 high.

U.S. equities and commodities tumbled Friday with news of bearish
second-quarter earnings and weaker U.S. consumer confidence data. Cocoa,
however, rose following strong demand signals as trading houses took delivery
of 240,100 tons of cocoa on London's NYSE Liffe. The second-largest delivery in
history comes amid a seasonally tight timeframe leading up to the West Africa
harvest in the fall.

"It's the short time of year [for supply] over there," said Jack Scoville,
vice president at Price Futures Group in Chicago. "One would assume they must
have a customer that needs it."

Demand has proven to be on the rise as cocoa grindings in major consumers
showed a marked jump from last year. Processors grind beans to produce the
cocoa butter and powder used in chocolate and chocolate-flavored foods.

The North American cocoa grind rose by 12.07% to 117,657 metric tons,
according to the National Confectioners Association. The German Confectionary
Industry said their grind climbed 11% to 83,879 metric tons. The rest of
European--the world's leading chocolate consumer--grindings rose 12.7% to
328,704 metric tons.

Scoville said cocoa prices could hold firm until new supplies hit the market.
The harvest in Ivory Coast, the world's top cocoa producer and exporter, begins
Oct. 1.

"Right now there just isn't the selling pressure from origin to keep the
prices down," Scoville said.

ICE cocoa open interest--the number of active positions left at the end of
the session--increased by 159 positions Thursday to total 126,804, the exchange
reported.

Volume was estimated 16,419 contracts, according to exchange data. In
options, approximately 2,197 calls and 1,627 puts traded during the same time
frame.

Close Change Range (To the point of settlement)
Sep $3,165 +$21 $3,138-$3,210
Dec $3,178 +$19 $3,150-$3,218